


Snufkin Practices DBT Skills

by ccharmeleon



Category: Moominvalley (Cartoon 2019), Mumintroll | Moomins Series - Tove Jansson, 楽しいムーミン一家 | Moomin (Anime 1990)
Genre: Autistic Snusmumriken | Snufkin, DBT, DBT Skills, Other, Snusmumriken | Snufkin - Freeform, TIPP, TIPP Skills, im not really sure how else to tag this, i’m absolutely projecting onto snufkin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:13:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,067
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23676679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ccharmeleon/pseuds/ccharmeleon
Summary: Snufkin is used to sensory overload ruining his day and embarrassing him in front of the Moomin family. Thanks to Moominmamma, however, he has a way to get a handle on his emotions.
Relationships: Mumintrollet | Moomintroll & Snusmumriken | Snufkin
Comments: 3
Kudos: 53





	Snufkin Practices DBT Skills

**Author's Note:**

> I’m in group DBT, and I learned a new skill last session. I thought about Snufkin using it and it made me chuckle so I thought I’d write a one shot about it. I love snuf and project onto him to cope so yeah. I leave a link at the end of the fic to an article explaining more about TIPP and distress tolerance <3

As Snufkin sat in the cozy Moominhouse kitchen, he felt a very familiar feeling wash over his body. Suddenly, Moomintroll and Sniff, who were really sitting a few inches away to his left and right felt pressed up right against his body. The room shrunk rapidly and the noise of idle chatter and dishes being washed was so loud it left his ears ringing. This feeling happened often, mostly when he was around people for too long, or in an enclosed space where the suffocation of social interaction and proper behavior gave him nowhere to run. In just a few seconds it would all become too much and he would make a fool of himself like he always did. Screaming and hitting his head he would run out of the house and hide in his tent, shame pooling in his chest as he tried to regain his grip on himself. 

However, This time it would be different. Just as he felt white hot emotion begin to flood every ounce of his body, he remembered what Moominmamma had told him once after a particularly bad episode. Shaking, he rose from his seat and silently excused himself by shuffling towards the door. Once he heard the door click behind him, he raced towards the shallow stream that flowed in front of Moominhouse. He ripped off his hat and, taking a deep breath, plunged his head into the water. 

At first all he felt was the freezing freshwater hit his face like a sheet. It was still the first few weeks of spring, meaning the stream had only just thawed. After a few seconds, however, he felt his body slow down. His blood pressure dropped and his heart rate slowly lowered back to normal. His thoughts, earlier consumed by anger and confusion, came to a screeching halt. The only thing he focused on was the sensation of his breathing, in and out. He only raised his head out of the water when every muscle in his body had relaxed. 

Snufkin blinked the moisture out of his eyes in surprise. Moominmamma’s suggestion had actually worked! 

Last fall, a few weeks before he was to set out , he had an incident not unlike what had just happened. All day Moomin had been sulking, clearly realizing how close winter was coming. It had made Snufkin feel uncomfortable. Conflicting thoughts he didn’t understand had been racing through his mind all day, leaving his brain fatigued. Despite this, he agreed to have dinner with the Moomins and Sniff. All through the night, he put on a mask. He spoke when he was supposed to, laughed when someone made a joke. He was the poster child of proper table etiquette. But wearing a mask becomes tiring after long, and it can easily slip away. The final straw had been Sniff leaning across him to reach for the salt, pressing his arm against Snufkin’s side and talking loudly into his ear, replying to something Moomin had said. His body burned where Sniff was touching him and the only thing he could think of was ending the unwanted contact. He pushed Sniff off him quite forcefully and threw his spoon across the kitchen in rage. Feeling hot shame pour over his body, he had raced upstairs into the spare bedroom and locked the door. He curled up in the corner and shook his hands, fighting off the feeling of Sniff’s touch as best as he could. Rocking back and forth, he squeezed his eyes shut and waited out the storm. 

What felt like hours later, he heard Moominmamma’s soft voice through the door. He unlocked it and looked away as she closed it behind her and sat on the bed. 

“You know,” she started, after a few seconds. “When Moomin was little, he threw temper tantrums like you’d never believe.” 

When Snufkin was silent, she continued. “For years I thought there was no way to handle them. I thought pappa and I would have to simply wait it out, hoping time and maturity would be on our side.”

She had turned to Snufkin then. “Clever pappa, never able to take no for an answer, he shut himself in his study for what seemed like days. He researched psychology, child development, anything he could get his hands on. That’s when he found something so bizarre that it had to be our saving grace.

“So, The next time Moomin got into one of his moods, we tested it out. We filled a bowl with water and had him stick his head in and hold his breath.” Snufkin must’ve made a face of surprise because mamma had chuckled at him. “Strange isn’t it? But lo and behold, that did the trick. He had calmed down enough to talk it out with us, and ever since then when we noticed him on edge we would fill up a bowl and he’d be able to stop the meltdowns before they happened.”

Snufkin was quiet for a moment. “How… Why does that work?” He finally asked. Moominmamma shrugged. 

“That i’m not sure my dear.” She got up off the bed and made her way towards the door. “Pappa tried to explain it to me, something about nervous systems and tricking your body into thinking you’re diving, things I couldn’t possibly understand.” She smiled. “Moomin is quite worried about you. If you’d like, I can tell him you need to be alone for the night.” 

Snufkin had nodded, pulling his hat down over his eyes. He felt badly about leaving but he knew it was for the best. That night he had thought about mamma’s words for a long time. 

He shook his head and felt himself pulled back to the present, feeling the droplets from his hair hit him in the face . A grin broke out onto his face as he laughed in disbelief. How silly! It had actually calmed him down! He took a few deep breaths and stood, placing his hat back atop his head. 

When he finally strolled back into the kitchen, Moomin’s mouth dropped open in surprise.   
“Snufkin!” he cried. “Your hair is soaked!” 

He laughed and shrugged his shoulders. “So it is.” he nodded, taking his seat back at the table and enjoying the incredulous look on his friend’s face. He wasn’t sure, but he thought he saw Moominmamma smile at him out of the corner of his eye.

**Author's Note:**

> A link for more info in this particular DBT skill!! 
> 
> https://manhattanpsychologygroup.com/dialectical-behavior-therapy-dbt-distress-tolerance-skills-tipp-skills/


End file.
